Pitchin'

So the past couple days I've been writing up query letters that I'm planning to send to US publications; I want to propose China-related article ideas to magazines, newspapers, journals, and new-media, in the hopes that they'll accept them on spec and eventually buy them as completed pieces.

I'll be posting the queries here on the blog, in the hopes that readers will comment with constructive feedback and/or suggestions about where to direct these queries (i.e., if you know of a magazine that would be really interested in this kind of story).

Below is the pitch for an article I've been working on with a Chinese friend of mine, that I'm hoping would be of broad appeal. I'd target general interest mags (Newsweek-knockoffs) and major online pubs such as Slate.

Watcha' think?

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"Going to Market: Faces of China’s New Economy"

Zhao Jun sells bootlegged DVDs on the street for 65 cents.
Wang Chen runs a boutique fashion store that specializes in leather handbags.
Niu Bi founded a company that manufactures ball bearings for export to Romania.

China’s astounding growth of the past two decades is rooted in its smooth transition to a market economy—the ditching of government quotas and the throwing of a nationwide do-it-yourself get-rich extravaganza.

But behind the jaw-dropping statistics, the trade surplus and the WTO, China’s economy still relies on real individuals doing business at real marketplaces.

Fellow journalist M** Y** and I have taken to the streets to better understand the everyday people that are driving the world’s fastest-growing economy. From butchers at the morning market to businessmen doing major-money deals, we want to know how the shift to private enterprise has affected the lives of individuals—as well as hear their hopes, concerns, and expectations about the road ahead.

“Going to Market” will encompass profiles of several independent entrepreneurs that have staked their claim in China’s new marketplace. Relevant statistics and analysis will be provided via interviews with economics experts both in China and abroad. The completed piece will run roughly 1,500 words in length and can be accompanied by photographs if needed.

M** Y** is an interviewer and reporter and a native of northeast China. I myself am a freelance writer—living in China and fluent in Mandarin—with experience writing for both in-print and online publications both here and in the States.